Top Chef Canada exit interviews: Connie DeSousa and Rob Rossi

Vancouver’s Dale MacKay may have won the prize, but he faced two tough competitors in Top Chef Canada’s season finale: Connie DeSousa of Charcut, and Rob Rossi, formerly of Mercatto. Rebecca Tucker spoke with the runners up about what it was like to have made Top Chef Canada’s inaugural Top 3.

QHow did it feel to be in the top 3?Connie Great, of course. It was something we’d worked for for so long.Rob You almost couldn’t believe that it was the end already.

QGiven how much was packed into the show’s 13 weeks on-air, did the amount of time you spent shooting go by quickly?R Yeah, again, it was like no time had passed. It’s a bit of a blur, looking back.

QWhat was it like at the hotel, with just the three of you left?R Very quiet. (laughs)

QTell me a bit about the Quickfire Challenge. Connie, you were sick; and Rob, you mentioned being distracted…C I don’t think the show’s producers had meant for the weather to be so bad.R It was supposed to be a beachy challenge, making barbecue, but it was a little crazy — sand everywhere, lots of wind. It was tough.

QGoing into the final challenge, did you change your strategy at all from what you’d done the rest of the season?C No. We were asked to show ourselves with our cooking, and that’s something I had tried to do the whole competition.R I agree. I just wanted to do what came naturally to me.

QWhat’s it like in that waiting room? What do you guys do in there?R Drink as much as possible (laughs).

QHow long are you in there?C A long, long time.R I think once we were in there for about five hours.

QWhat has it been like since you filmed the show?R Just in terms of opening more people up to coming to the restaurant, it’s been amazing.C It’s funny — near the end of the show, people stopped asking me how far I’d go and just started asking if I won.

QConnie, you continually emphasized wanting to win Top Chef Canada on behalf of female chefs. How do you feel about having set that mandate now?C Obviously, it’s disappointing to have lost. But if I was seen by potential female chefs and able to demonstrate that women can do it, I’m happy with that.

QWhat’s next for the two of you? Rob, I know you just left Mercatto.R I’m opening a restaurant. That’s about all I can say at this point.C John, my partner at Charcut, and I will be opening up a restaurant … something Calgary has never seen before, for sure.